In a rare rebuke, the European Commission criticised Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Friday over remarks directed at Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. Kyiv and Budapest have clashed over Hungary’s blocking of a €90bn European Union loan package intended to support Ukraine’s finances during its war with Russia.
The dispute intensified after Zelenskyy said on Thursday that he could give Ukrainian troops the address of a “certain person,” a remark widely interpreted in Budapest as referring to Prime Minister Orbán.
Not acceptable
Speaking at the Commission’s daily press briefing in Brussels, deputy chief spokesperson Olof Gill said Mr Zelenskyy’s comments crossed a line.
“Specifically in relation to the comments made by President Zelenskyy, we are very clear as the European Commission that that type of language is not acceptable. There must not be threats against EU member states.”
Rhetoric heats up
Relations between the two governments have deteriorated not only over the loan package but over the disruption of oil deliveries through the Druzhba pipeline. Hungary argues that Ukraine deliberately halted the flow of Russian oil that supplies parts of Central Europe, while Kyiv maintains the infrastructure was damaged earlier this year during a Russian drone strike.
Mr Orbán responded sharply, accusing Ukraine of blocking oil supplies and warning that Hungary would end what he described as an oil blockade. Ukraine later said it would be willing to repair the pipeline within about a month if the European Union formally requested it and Hungary withdrew its veto on the financial assistance package.
You might be interested
The Commission urged both sides to lower the tone of their public statements, warning that increasingly confrontational rhetoric risks undermining broader European efforts to support Ukraine, maintain unity inside the EU and preserve energy stability during the war.
